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Semester starts for Central Louisiana universities

Leigh Guidry
8:42 p.m. CDT August 25, 2014

Sarah Jane Sablay of Leesville tries out the U.S. Army Orange County Chopper at Northwestern State University on the first day of the fall semester. The motorcycle was featured on the Discovery Channel series “American Chopper” and is used as an Army recruitment tool and to unofficially launch a new camouflage pattern. It will be on display near Kyser Hall through Wednesday.(Photo: Courtesy)

College classes kicked off in Central Louisiana on Monday but not just for college students. Several dual enrollment partnerships in the area also allowed some high school students to join the fun.

Taylor and Brett Lambert rode together to Louisiana State University of Alexandria to get their books and last-minute supplies Monday morning. The brothers from Mansura both will be on campus this semester: Taylor as a sophomore in college, and Brett as a senior at Avoyelles High School.

Brett, 17, will complete 25 college credits this year before graduating high school, thanks to a partnership between LSUA and the Avoyelles Parish School Board. Four Avoyelles public high schools are taking advantage of the Early College Academy for Avoyelles Parish Students (eCAAPS).

His brother Taylor, 19, transferred to LSUA after his freshman year at University of Louisiana-Lafayette, where he took out a loan to cover housing expenses. His advice to Brett is to keep up the dual enrollment and stay in the area for his first year of college.

“I wish they’d started this (eCAAPS) sooner,” Taylor said. “It would have saved me like $5,000.”

Brett plans to study biology or history at LSUA next year. He expects to see many of the high school students on campus become LSUA students.

“They’re going to probably keep half the students coming here,” he said.

Fellow Avoyelles senior Olivia Turk, 17, plans to stick around and study nursing next year as a freshman. Her decision to take 11 credits this fall seemed like a no-brainer to her and classmate Brady Dixon, 17.

“It’s free and we get to start (college) early,” she said. “We’d finished all our senior courses already.”

High school seniors aren’t the only non-traditional students at LSUA this year. The University Academy of Central Louisiana opened on the campus Aug. 6 and allows younger students to take LSUA courses.

But Angela Jack, 40, and Amy Rosette, 37, are on the other end of the spectrum. They’re studying nursing while working full-time as licensed practical nurses in Ville Platte and Opelousas, respectively.

They chose LSUA because it offered several online courses and made working and going to school easier.

Louisiana College students also returned to class at the private Baptist school in Pineville on Monday. Those with classes in Cavanaugh Hall got some extra summer thanks to a loss of electricity in the building. An electrical storm destroyed a transformer, and Cleco was working Monday to restore power. Late Monday, LC announced that there would be no classes in Cavanaugh Hall on Tuesday.

But otherwise, the day was successful before more rain fell Monday afternoon. Meagan Nugent, 21, made it across campus and inside before the rain started. She needed a new student ID for her senior year.

Nugent has three semesters to go before graduating with a degree in elementary education. Her goal this fall is to make all A’s, but outside of the classroom she’s hoping to create a sense of community at the College Drive Apartments.

“I’m an RA (resident adviser),” she said. “My goal is to interact with every one of my residents on a daily basis.”

Alex Newell, 18, moved into his dorm last week and has been getting to know his roommate, a soccer player from Pensacola, Fla. With a 17-year-old brother, Newell has had plenty of practice sharing space.

“In his 17 years, we’ve probably shared a room for 12,” Newell said.

A freshman from Elton, Newell had not planned on attending LC until he visited the campus last fall.

“I was dead set on going to Southeastern Louisiana University,” he said. “(But) I fell in love. I had to come here.”

Administration at LSUA, LC and Northwestern State University reported smooth first-day experiences.